Pangasinan: Reelected Governor Ramon Guico III has reaffirmed his commitment to focus on health, education, agriculture, tourism infrastructure, and community outreach in his second term as the chief executive of Pangasinan province. "Think of long term yet connect more with the communities. So what's good is we were able to start long-term projects, we are going to nurture these and wait for them to grow," Guico said during his inaugural ceremony.
According to Philippines News Agency, Guico referred to several initiatives launched during his first term, including the Pangasinan Link Expressway, Government Unified Incentives for Medical Consultation (Guiconsulta) program, the establishment of the Pangasinan Polytechnic College (PPC), Capitol Complex Development Project, and hospital construction and upgrades. Healthcare remains a top priority for Guico, who emphasized its importance in achieving societal success. The province's Guiconsulta program supports the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation's Konsulta program, both aiming to meet the goals of the Universal Healthcare Law.
Guico targets enrolling at least 2 million Pangasinenses in the Konsulta program. The Guiconsulta initiative provides PhilHealth members with transportation and food allowances for free medical services. Konsulta offers comprehensive outpatient benefits, including free medical consultations, health risk screening, diagnostic testing, and access to selected drugs and medicines.
PhilHealth Ilocos Regional Vice President Dennis Adre praised Pangasinan's efforts to allocate funds for the Guiconsulta program, highlighting the challenge of capturing 1.4 million enrollees annually. As of May, 600,945 enrolled Pangasinense members have accessed the services, with 81 hospital and clinics accredited as Konsulta providers.
Guico announced plans for new hospitals, a training facility for doctors, and specialized centers like a Heart Center, Lung Center, Clinical Center, and Cancer Institute. In education, he revealed plans to expand PPC campuses and establish a School of Medicine and Health Sciences. The Commission on Higher Education recently awarded a Certificate of Program Compliance to PPC Lingayen for four programs, furthering the province's educational offerings.
Tourism projects include the Capitol Complex redevelopment, featuring the country's longest reflective pool, an interactive dancing fountain, a 1,500-seat convention center, an 11-story Government Center, and flood mitigation projects. A community outreach program has also been launched to provide medical and dental consultations, free laboratory services, health packs, and hot meals to Pangasinenses.
In agriculture, Guico tasked relevant provincial officials and members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to raise funds for the corporate farming program, which has reduced production costs and increased yield despite low palay buying prices. Guico concluded by appealing for continued support from Pangasinenses and expressed gratitude to his supporters in the recent elections.
